Are you one of those really busy people who are running from work, to the gym, to activities, family events and volunteer commitments? It’s really great to be involved and to be active in your community, but it can come at a price if you start to notice your home-related tasks are piling up and your home is becoming disorganized and important things aren’t getting done. For example, if you’re running from here to there, barely making it on time and when you get home, you’re surrounded by piles of laundry, clutter and piles of mail, you may start to feel like you’re drowning or getting behind. It’s hard to relax in your home when you feel things closing in as you slip further and further behind.
So, what’s white space? It’s the space on your calendar that has nothing on it-blank, white, open and it’s just for you. It’s not for you to fill with more activities, it’s not for you to fill with more meetings, it’s not for you to fill with one more volunteer activity-it’s meant for you to catch up. You may need to catch up on your housework, on your laundry, bill paying or yard work. You can even use if for self-care; imagine that!
You have to really make sure you protect your white space because it can be tempting for a busy person such as yourself to fill it up. To protect this sacred space, you may have to say, “No,” to requests sometimes and that’s okay. And, you don’t owe anyone an explanation about what you’re doing and how you’re spending your time. Your white space is yours and you don’t have to justify taking time to catch up.
Create some white space today to help save your sanity while making you feel on top of important things in your life and in your home.
Courtesy of my Efficient Organization column in the Lake Stevens Ledger.
